1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an improved fire fighting hose which includes a harness to aid in supporting the hose near the hose nozzle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Fire fighting hoses have existed for many years. Although advances in the construction of fire hoses have been made over the years insofar as selections of material, nozzle configurations and hose couplings are concerned, the basic structure of a fire fighting hose has remained essentially unchanged. Specifically, a fire fighting hose of the type used by professional fire fighters employs a tough but flexible tubular structure forming the body of the hose. The tubular structure of the hose may be constructed of tough, woven fabric having a rubberized or other water impenetrable inner surface. At one end the body of the fire fighting hose is provided with a standardized metal coupling suitable for attachment to a pumping outlet port in a fire engine. At its opposite end the body of the fire hose has a metal nozzle which directs a stream of water at a blaze to be brought under control.
Conventional fire hoses are preferably constructed so that the body of the hose can be collapsed relatively flat. This permits a hose of relatively great length to be collapsed and stored in a relatively compact area. When the hose is in use, however, and carries a flow of water therethrough, the pressure of the water forms the body of the hose into a cylindrical annular tube-like structure.
To effectively fight fires a fire fighting hose must be constructed to conduct a considerable volume of water at a high rate of flow. As a consequence, fire fighting hoses utilized by professional fire fighters must be constructed of heavy, durable materials which cannot be easily punctured and which will not develop leaks. As a result, professional fire fighting hoses are quite heavy and difficult to manually manipulate when conducting a flow of water therethrough. Indeed, it is not uncommon for two or even more fire fighters to be required to control the awesome power of the hose and effectively direct the nozzle of a hose at the fire to be brought under control.
Due to the tremendous power of the water flowing through a fire hose in combatting a fire, fire fighters do sometimes lose control of a hose even though they normally employ both arms to control the hose and point the nozzle appropriately. Sometimes the power of the water surging through the hose causes a fire fighter to lose his grip on the body of the hose. When this occurs the nozzle end of the hose will sometimes thrash wildly and can only be brought under control by cutting the flow of water to the hose. Such incidents are dangerous to the fire fighters involved, since receipt of an unexpected blast of water from an uncontrolled hose can cause a fire fighter to lose his grip or balance and then fall, often while in a precarious position. Also, the violently moving nozzle itself can have the same effect and also cause serious injury to the fire fighter by delivering powerful blows to the fire fighter's head, hands or body.
Furthermore, due to the noise and commotion that exists in fighting a fire considerable time is expended in communicating the problem of loss of control of a hose to the personnel controlling the flow of water through the hose so that water pressure can be cut to that hose in order to permit the fire fighting personnel to regain control of the hose. Also, valuable time is lost in combatting the fire, since the attention of certain of the fire fighting personnel must be directed toward regaining control of the hose, rather than knocking down the fire.